Why do so many South African eCommerce sites publish product shots that are fuzzy, grainy, too small or otherwise totally obscure? What’s the big deal? The quality of your product shots is some of the very stuff that makes up online selling credibility. It’s a big deal and can make or break your site’s success in converting visitors into customers.
If you walked into any respectable shop, in any mall, anywhere with the intention of buying shoes for example, how would you feel if the shoe sales man brought you your desired pair in a crumpled and flattened box? What would this make you think about the way he (and the store) looked after their products? You might question the quality of the shoes, even the store owner’s integrity? Obscure image = dodgy product. That's generally what a visitor's mind computes and if that red light is on then they are probably going to hesitant about ordering. For anyone that sells anything seriously, creating as many reasons for people to buy from you should be the ultimate goal. Selling online is no different.
Give your customers the best possible representation of your products by supplying top quality photographs. You might even consider providing multiple shots should the product be better represented visually from different angles. Customers need to first immediately recognise the product while also being satisfied with its quality. Although there are many other factors that go into a buying decision, covering this base is obvious and easy if one invests a little time and money in it.
Can you do this yourself? Yes, but only if you have the right experience and the right equipment. I’m an amateur photographer myself, but I don’t know how to ensure I’ve got the right lighting so as to avoid shadows. Even if you know how to take product shots, what if you’ve got hundreds of products – or maybe even thousands? When are you honestly going to have the time? The reason why there are so many low quality product images out there is because there are so many shop owners (or shop owner’s nephews) masquerading as Stock photographers. As much as we South African’s pride ourselves on being independent and DIY, there’s a time and place where a professional can make all the difference.
Stock photographers are numerous in South Africa and charge in the region of R2000 per half day (R3500 for a full day) – and they’ll snap off hundreds if not thousands of top quality photographs of your products for you while you carry on with business. Try the Online Yellow Pages or navigate to [online photographic communities like Outdoor Photo to find stock photographers in your area.
Once you’ve got those images, you’ll never look back and you’ll be that one step closer to making the kind of online sales you deserve.
Posted
Sep 24 2008, 02:27 PM
by
Byron Levey